Living Unaware
by ThatShan
Summary: Without Fred, George was nothing, a shell of a man, and so everyday he sat, living unaware. Written for the HPFC Writing Quotes challenge.
1. Stairs

Written for the HPFC 'Writing Quotes' Challenge.

Living Unaware

'_Some things are meant to be broken. Imperfect. Chaotic. It's the universe's way of providing balance - contrast, you know? There have to be a few holes in the road. That's how life__ is.'_

Stairs

One month. One month exactly since the final battle, since the end of the second wizarding war. Blood and tears had been spilt, but slowly the world was returning to a calm state. Mothers, fathers, spouses and siblings still wept occasionally, and of course they would still be seen visiting their loved one's graves quite frequently but life was returning to as close to normal as it would ever become. Smiles and laughs became a more common thing amongst everyone, well almost everyone.

In the village of Ottery St Catchpole stood a tall rickety looking house. If you were daring enough to wander inside this house you'd see quite the opposite than what you'd expect. Instead of dust, spiders and debris, you'd see a comfortable living room with signs of life in every corner, you'd see pictures which appeared to be moving, every single one of them showed a happy smiling face of redheads, a brunette or a figure with raven locks. If you moved further in you'd see a wonky staircase with parts slightly missing; and this staircase is where our story takes flight.

A lone red haired man sat on the creaking stair case at The Burrow, the Weasley family home. Tears steadily trickled down his freckled cheeks but he took no note, tears were common for him these days. He'd lost Fred, Fred his other half, his soul, and with only half a soul, was there really anything left to live for? Sure, he had four other brothers, five if you counted Harry, but that wasn't enough, none of them were Fred, his Fred. He tried to remember the happy times they'd had together, the pranks, jokes and bad grades, but he couldn't, the only thing he could remember was that feeling, the feeling he'd felt when the light had left Fred's eyes, emptiness. He'd known when it had happened, he'd felt it, part of him died on the battlefield with Fred, but he tried so hard to pretend that he wasn't feeling it, to pretend that Fred was still there, but then he'd seen the body identical to his own. Every time he closed his eyes he'd see the lifeless for of his brother, his twin.

Soon, the seconds turned to minutes, and the minutes to hours, but George didn't know. George didn't see the worried looks his mother gave, he didn't hear the hushed whispers between father and son nor did he notice when the raven haired man took his hand and led him to his room, his and Fred's room. He may have been living, but he was living unaware, not noticing as the world drifted by.


	2. Dark

**Part Two - Dark**

Harry pulled George through the wonky door of the twin's bedroom before gently pushing him onto the patchwork quilt that covered the bed. Fred's bed. He rested his hand on George's shoulder before calmly taking George's chin in his hand and looking into his deep brown eyes. Darkness, that's all he could see, that was all that was left of George's usually mischievous eyes. He sighed before taking a seat on the opposite bed.

"Listen George, I've seen death, I've caused it even, but none of them hurt as much as seeing you. Each time we look at you we see you broken, we see you looking as if you were dead, and quite frankly it can't go on much longer" Harry stated. Slowly, George raised his head to look into the emerald eyes that contained a darkness much like his own, he sighed before starting to mumble.

"But none of you know what it's like, sure, you've lost a son or a brother but me, I've lost my other half, how am I supposed to move on and forget all about that, ALL ABOUT HIM!" He said ending up shouting. Harry moved to put a comforting arm around his shoulder. "Fred was everything, my everything, we were Fred and George, Gred and Forge, and now it's just me, George, and I don't know if I can be just George. I don't know how to be just George. He promised me, he'd always have my back and how is he supposed to have it when he's gone. I keep looking over my shoulder, expecting him to be there ready to finish my sentences but he's not and all that's there is darkness. What am I supposed to do? Fred was my better half, he was always the funnier, better looking twin, we had a balance and now without him I'm nothing. Why don't any of you understand that? I can't go on without Fred; I'm not supposed to be without Fred. Once when we were four, Mum left me at our Grandfather's before taking Fred to do some shopping, the whole day I never stopped crying and neither did he. We were never separated after that, isn't that proof that we're supposed to be together? My whole body just feels empty, numb, like something vital is missing, and that missing thing is Fred. I can't live without a heart, or lungs, just the same as it's impossible to live without Fred." With that, George broke down into a fit of anguish filled sobs clinging tightly onto Harry's homemade emerald green jumper. Every tear shed, filled with darkness.


	3. Hope

**Living Unaware**

Hope

As the sobs slowly muffled, Harry conjured a handkerchief and handed it to George, whose eyes where now so puffy and red, it was hard to see the pupils.

"Death;" Harry began "it's a hard concept really. No one really knows what happens next, not really anyway. I'm not going to pretend I know exactly how you're feeling George, because I don't, no one does; what you and Fred had, it was unique, one of a kind, but do you really think Fred would want you to throw all your hard work away for nothing? I've lost many people over the years, and for a long time, I blamed myself, much the same as you're currently doing, but eventually, I learnt that some things just can't be helped, and that sometimes it's for the better. Now, I'm not saying its better that Fred died, I'm certainly not, but just imagine what exactly would have happened if Fred had survived. He got the majority of the impact in that explosion, if not dead, he would have been seriously injured, and who knows when he would have received medical attention? He'd have been suffering in agony for possibly the rest of his life, and you more than anyone should know that's not how Fred would have wanted it. His at peace now, free from the pain, and what's more, he's with his heroes, The Marauders. I'm not trying to hurt you by saying these things George, but you really do need to hear them, it's not healthy for you George and for the rest of the family, it's like losing another member all over again."

George raised his head to properly meet Harry's eyes for the first time since long before the battle. They were just a pit of swirling emptiness. The eyes of a dead man.

"Does it ever go away, the pain I mean?" George asked with a desperate longing in his eyes.

"Honestly?" George nodded. "The pain is always there, but over time, you learn to deal with it. To begin with, it's like being stabbed in the heart with a white-hot knife, as I'm sure you know, but eventually, there's just a small dull throb. But the throb isn't necessarily a bad thing; it reminds you that even though they're gone from the world, they're still with you, in your heart."

Crystal tears leaked from both their eyes now, as they both desperately clung to each other, absorbing whatever warmth the other had to offer. After a few minutes of silence, George spoke up again.

"But Harry, I'm not strong like you. You're a survivor, something I'm not cut out to be. How are you supposed to deal with it all? How'd you deal with all the dreadful things in your life?" He asked, his voice barely above a whisper.

"My relatives, they never used to treat me all that great, you know that, and so I often found myself hiding in the library whenever I got the chance, Dudley would never go there. Once, after a particularly bad game of 'Harry Hunting', I ran straight there, desperately seeking the solitude yet comfort only books could provide, that was when I came across a wonderful saying that I soon adopted as my own personal private motto. No matter how hard things got, I would always remember it. _'Some__things are meant to be broken. Imperfect. Chaotic. It's the universe's way of providing balance - contrast, you know? There have to be a few holes in the road. That's how life is.' _George, I just want you to promise me you'll always remember that. When times are bad and you think there's no future, remember that. I know right now that you think that there is nothing but Fred, but just remember things aren't meant to be perfect and that even though it may not seem like it, there is a reason to it all, not matter how unreal or unbelievable it may be." Harry said calmly before giving George one last smile and departing the room.

"I promise." He whispered to the empty room. And with those two simple words, hope had been formed within the dingy room housing identical beds.


	4. Sparkle

**A/N: Just wanted to say sorry for the lack of writing. Life is currently extremely busy, and NaNoWriMo is just around the corner so I've been kinda bogged down. Anyway, it's here and the last chapter should be up some time in the next few days, perhaps this evening. Please do leave a review and tell me what you think =]**

**Living Unaware**

Sparkle

The morning of the 1st of July started out much like any other since the end of the Second Wizarding War. Molly was the first to rise, shortly followed by Arthur. They sat down at the table, Molly with her coffee and two sugars, Arthur with his strong tea. They sat in a comfortable silence listening to the song of the birds as they flew above the dewy hilltops surrounding the Burrow. They would then hear muffled footsteps indicating the rising of Percy as he dressed for another day of work rebuilding the Ministry. Bill and Fleur would shortly follow down as Molly stood by the stove cooking the morning's heavenly breakfast. As soon as the bacon was cooked Ron, Harry, Hermione and Ginny would all come storming down the rickety stairs hastily digging into the food as if it were the only thing they'd eaten for years.

Chatter and the rustlings of newspaper began to fill the Burrow as Ron tucked into seconds. Suddenly, there was an inhumane shriek as Ron leapt three foot into the air. Heads quickly snapped into his direction and found his horror struck eyes staring at a plate full of... spiders. Everyone eyed the plate curiously before a sudden burst of laughter came from the door way. There stood George, wand out, nearly collapsing in a fit of laughter. Soon the laughter became infectious, even Ron was laughing, although nervously. As the final giggles died down, Molly opened her mouth to shout at George for playing such a horrible prank on his brother, but no sound came out. The look in George's eyes made her speechless. She just shook her head and smiled before giving him a heaping plate of food.

George thanked his mother before sitting down opposite Harry, grateful there were no questions. He winked at Harry before grabbing a sausage; the rest of the family blinded by the sparkle in his eye.


	5. Remember

**A/N; Okay, so a lot quicker than I thought but here is the final segment of Living Unaware. I hope you enjoy!**

**Living Unaware**

Remember

5 years had passed since that horrific night and although the scars were still there, the Wizarding World had managed to move on. The Ministry had been rebuilt; no longer corrupt with Shacklebolt as Minister. Hogwarts was as good as new, tutoring the next generation in the fine and delicate art of magic. But perhaps the biggest success was Weasleys' Wizarding Wheezes. Once a small shop along Diagon Alley, it had now expanded all over the world and even into the muggle world, although under a different name.

But today, no Weasley shop was open for the owner forbids it. When questioned why, he would just say "To remember". For today was the 1st July, the day that George Weasley had accepted that his brother was no longer with him in body, but in heart. And so, if anyone were to look for George on this day, they wouldn't find him in his lab, nor with his new wife, nor at the family home, The Burrow, but at a small cemetery in the village of Ottery St. Catchpole. They would find him hunched over a marble gravestone, crying with puffy eyes. To him, this was Fred's day. Fred's day was the day he sat and remembered, remembered all the exploits and detentions they'd had. The inventions they'd made and the dreams they'd created. This was the day he mourned the loss of half his soul.

As the sun began to set, he stood before looking towards the sky and smiling. Fred was gone, but Fred was waiting for him, and no matter what he'd never forget. He made his way to the iron gate glancing back just once. It had been so hard to accept that his twin was no longer among the living, so hard to remember that when he awoke in the morning the bed across from his would be empty. So hard to forget about the one he loved most. But then, a wise man had told him not to try and forget but to always remember, for when you remember, they will always be with, in your heart, mind and soul. And George understood. George would always remember, remember Fred, his twin, his other half, his Forge and he would accept it, for _Some things are meant to be broken. Imperfect. Chaotic. It's the universe's way of providing balance - contrast, you know? There have to be a few holes in the road. That's how life is._

He would keep his promise. He would remember.


End file.
